Hakeem Jeffries (00:01):
… for everyday Americans, and contrast that with the extreme MAGA Republican budget plan to visit upon the American people, the largest Medicaid cut in American history. This is an issue of life or death for children, women, everyday Americans, people with disabilities, and older Americans who rely on Medicaid for nursing home care and for home care. The notion that House Republicans are determined to enact the largest Medicaid cut in American history so they can give Elon Musk and their billionaire MAGA donors a massive tax cut is outrageous. That's the moment that we're in right now.
(01:01)
Earlier today, every single House Republican leader tripled down on their harmful budget, which will hurt children, hurt families, hurt seniors, hurt veterans, and hurt everyday Americans. House Republicans are successful in enacting their reckless budget. People all across America, including in the districts they represent, are going to lose their healthcare, lose veterans' benefits, and lose nutritional assistance for hungry children and hungry families. It's unacceptable, unconscionable, and un-American. And over the next few weeks, House Democrats are going to do everything we can to stop their reckless budget dead in its tracks. Questions?
Speaker 2 (02:24):
In a similar vein, with Social Security job cuts to the Social Security administration, what tools do Democrats actually have to prevent these kinds of things from happening? And do you anticipate missed checks coming from Social Security?
Hakeem Jeffries (02:39):
Donald Trump and House Republicans want to take a chainsaw to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Why? To pass a massive tax cut for Elon Musk and their billionaire donors. That's the whole scheme. It is a toxic scheme. Throughout the campaign, Donald Trump promised that Republicans were not going to touch Social Security, not going to touch Medicare, and not going to touch Medicaid. They lied.
(03:21)
Republicans are detonating Social Security and its benefits and the Social Security administration in real time, and benefits are going to be adversely impacted. That's the reality of the situation. That's the reason why House Republicans are running scared. They were directed not to hold town hall meetings. They were missing in action all of last week because they can't justify the attacks on Social Security, the attacks on Medicare, the attacks on Medicaid, and the attacks on the things that matter for the American people.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
Thank you, Mr. Leader. Republicans are starting to raise concerns about Florida 6, the seat there that was filled by Michael Waltz. I want to see if you think Democrats have a chance of actually flipping the seat or if the DCCC should start investing in that race?
Hakeem Jeffries (04:25):
I personally contributed to both candidates in Florida and have encouraged others to do so. These are races that should not, under ordinary circumstances, be on anyone's political radar. They are safe Republican seats that Donald Trump won by more than 30 points in both instances, including in Florida 6. The American people are not buying what the Republicans are selling. That is why they are on the run. All we hear about, including earlier today, was the notion that Republicans have some massive mandate. There's no mandate to enact the largest Medicaid cut in American history. There's no mandate to try to blow up the public schools in America. There's no mandate to fire thousands of veterans who served this country with great heroism, and now they've been tossed aside and discarded.
(05:41)
And so chickens are starting to come home to roost. We've seen it in a variety of different special elections at the state and local level over the last several months, and it will be interesting to see what happens in Florida. These districts are so Republican, there would ordinarily be no reason to believe that the races will be close, but what I can say, almost guaranteed, is that the Democratic candidate in both of these Florida special elections will significantly overperform. This will represent another sign that the Republicans are on the run and that Democrats are going to take back control of the House of Representatives next year.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
Thank you, Mr. Leader. Just changing topics. Obviously, I'm sure you've heard the story by now. The editor-in-chief of The Atlantic says he was caught on this text chain Signal chat with top Trump administration officials as they were discussing these airstrikes in Yemen. What is your reaction to that? And do you believe there should be a congressional investigation?
Hakeem Jeffries (07:07):
There should absolutely be a congressional investigation so that we can understand what happened, why did it happen, and how do we prevent this type of national security breach from ever happening again? This is reckless, irresponsible, and dangerous. Who are some of these people that Donald Trump has put into the most sensitive national security positions in America? We were promised that Donald Trump was going to hire the very best. It's all phony. The attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion, phony. This was never about hiring the best people.
(08:00)
As Democrats, we actually believe in merit, merit that should be based on what you know, not who you know. And understand, this whole Trump administration is filled with lackeys and incompetent cronies. I'm not talking about any particular individual, though I will note that the Secretary of Defense who was on that chain has got to be the most unqualified person ever to lead the Pentagon in American history. Think about that. You've put these people in charge in a very dangerous world, and then you want to attack communities of color, attack women, and attack others who are actually very qualified. CQ Brown, incredibly qualified, brilliant, served this country well. All of these attacks from the Trump administration on a diverse America, it's all phony. These people are incredibly unqualified, irresponsible, and they're jeopardizing America's national security. Next, go back to this side.
Speaker 5 (09:33):
Thank you, Mr. Leader. You posted a video earlier today saying the House Democrats will prevent the Trump administration from closing the Department of Education. You mentioned two lawsuits were filed today. Are there any other plans in the works for you to push back against that executive order that the president signed last week dismantling the Department of Education?
Hakeem Jeffries (09:53):
Yeah. The effort to dismantle the Department of Education is deeply unpopular, as is the fact that they are trying to detonate Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. I mean, who are these people? This is the mandate that you claim to have, to dismantle the American way of life? This is why they're on the run. This is why they're hiding from the American people. This is why they're panicking in that Florida special election. This is why Elon Musk is pouring millions of dollars into Wisconsin. These people have overreached and failed to deliver on their core promise, which was to drive down the high cost of living in the United States of America. That's what they promised all of last year, and then ran away from Project 2025 as if it didn't exist. Lied in cold-blooded fashion to the American people.
(10:58)
What are they doing this year? Have done nothing to lower costs. Costs aren't going down. They're going up. Inflation is going up. They're crashing the economy in real time, driving us to a Republican recession, have done nothing to address inflation. Not a single bill, not a single executive order, not a single administrative action. Instead, they're unleashing the horrors of Project 2025, which they claimed last year didn't exist and that they knew nothing about. They're unleashing the horrors of Project 2025 on the American people by doing things like trying to blow up our nation's public schools. So, House Democrats are of course going to push back aggressively against it. We will stop them in Congress, and we will stop them in the courts. Department of Education was created by an act of Congress. A wannabe king cannot unravel it. The only way to unravel the Department of Education is through the Congress. Let's be clear. They don't have the votes to do it. It's not happening in the Congress, and it's going to get stopped in the courts.
Speaker 6 (12:19):
Mr. Leader, there was some criticism about how democratic leaders weren't on the same page as it relates to the spending negotiations from a week ago. You're talking about standing up, preventing Medicaid cuts during these budget negotiations going forward. How can you assure your supporters that leaders are now on the same page? And I don't mean just within the House, but in the Senate as well.
Hakeem Jeffries (12:41):
Well, the House was incredibly unified, and we will remain unified in opposition to pushing back against the effort to jam the largest cut to Medicaid in American history down the throats of the American people. Every single House Democrat voted against the reckless Republican budget at the end of February. Every single House Democrat. In fact, every single Senate Democrat voted against the Senate budget resolution. So, I'm very confident that we will continue to be on the same page because we have been on the same page as it relates to this issue.
Speaker 7 (13:26):
Leader Jeffries, just to follow up on the Signal chat, Representative Chrissy Houlahan sent a letter to you, as well as Speaker Johnson, calling for further training of members on handling classified documents and information. That wasn't included in the rules package for this Congress. Is that something you support? And do you think that there are issues within the House when it comes to members handling classified information?
Hakeem Jeffries (13:48):
I haven't had an opportunity to take a look at Representative Houlahan's letter, but we are going to hear from Ranking Member Jim Himes tomorrow, and I look forward to that presentation before the House Democratic Caucus.
Speaker 8 (14:05):
Thank you, Leader Jeffries. On the subject of Medicaid, you say that the House Democrats are unified on opposing the Republicans' plans, but as you know, for a reconciliation bill in both chambers, you only need a simple majority, and Republicans are in that majority. So, how can you tell people who are skeptical, who perhaps agree with you that your strategy is going to be effective, what tangible steps do you have to actually thwart this agenda, if any?
Hakeem Jeffries (14:32):
At the end of the day, we only need three House Republicans to do the right thing and protect the healthcare of their very own constituents. And there are dozens of House Republicans who know the right thing to do is to vote against this effort to jam the largest Medicaid cut in our nation's history down the throats of the American people. They know it. This is why House Republicans are refusing to engage with their constituents. They are running away from their constituents. They are refusing to hold town hall meetings all across the country. And so it's going to be incredibly important for the citizenry in every single district to make their voices heard as it relates to Republicans and make clear, "Keep your hands off our healthcare," in the same way that everyday Americans were able to do that in 2017 during the fight to protect the Affordable Care Act.
(15:54)
I would note, despite this claim that is so entirely baseless about some massive mandate, that House Republican leaders continue to put out there as if they have a mandate to take away healthcare from the American people, which is ridiculous, back in 2017 when Donald Trump won election the first time, he lost the popular vote, but there were 241 Republicans in the House of Representatives and only 194 Democrats. We were buried deep in the minority, and yet the American people rose up. And as a result, in the House and then, subsequently, in the Senate, buried deep in the minority, we stopped them from repealing the Affordable Care Act, even though they had massive numbers available to them at the time.
(17:11)
In 2024, Donald Trump wins the popular vote, does better in every single state in America than he had previously done, and yet he comes to Congress, and at full strength there are 220 Republicans, maybe, and 215 Democrats. That's the smallest majority that any party has held since the Great Depression. And so, on any given vote, by the time this comes to the floor a few weeks, but more likely a few months from now, because Republicans can't get their act together on how extreme they want to be at this moment, it only takes three Republicans to do the right thing. That's a very different situation than the country found itself in in 2017, and yet we were successful then, and as long as the American people show up, and stand up, and speak up for what we all know is right, we can be successful once more.
Speaker 9 (18:28):
Thank you, Leader Jeffries. Rep AOC drew some large crowds on the trail this past week, stumping out west with Senator Sanders. Is it wise to elevate her as a party messenger? And to what extent are you concerned that she could become a prominent bogeyman for the GOP ahead of 2026?
Hakeem Jeffries (18:47):
She's already a prominent member of the House Democratic Caucus. I expect that will continue.
Speaker 10 (18:54):
On community project funding, obviously, the recently passed continuing resolution didn't include any for the fiscal year of 2025. I'm wondering if you can speak to, A, what the impact of that is in your district and other districts, and B, how you and your members are going to approach the loss of that funding going forward. Will you be requesting for 2026?
Hakeem Jeffries (19:15):
The absence of community project funding is another example of Republicans making the decision to hand over the power of the purse to Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the administration. It's obviously a decision that we are strongly opposed to, as evidenced by our strong opposition to the reckless Republican spending bill for reasons that related to veterans' benefits, health care cuts, and cuts to nutritional assistance to children and families, as well as housing support all across America.
(19:54)
Moving forward, our view will be represented if there are, in fact, bipartisan discussions that take place, broadly relating to the congressional power of the purse, and making sure that members have the ability to help determine what spending priorities are most needed for the districts that they are privileged to represent, as opposed to some out-of-touch, unelected, billionaire puppet master making decisions on behalf of everyday Americans throughout this country. Last question.
Speaker 11 (20:37):
One of the more tenured members of your caucus is facing a primary challenge. There have obviously been a lot of other discussions around the country about progressive activists, grassroots activists, primarying members that they don't think are taking a hard enough tack against President Trump or have simply been in office too long. Are you concerned at all about incumbents getting ousted this cycle? And what specific steps are you taking to prevent that?
Hakeem Jeffries (21:02):
I'm not familiar with who you're talking about.
Speaker 11 (21:04):
Congressman Schakowsky is facing a challenge from Kat Abughazaleh.
Hakeem Jeffries (21:08):
She's a long-standing member, obviously a long-standing stalwart aggressive member. I'm unfamiliar with this particular challenge, so I can't comment on it beyond having a conversation with Jan at some point. There's a lot of energy, a lot of angst, a lot of anxiety, of course, across the country as it relates to the parade of horribles that Donald Trump has been unleashing on the American people. Our focus is going to be: stop bad things from happening to the American people. And there'll be a time and place where the politics will take care of itself. Thanks, everyone.
Speaker 4 (21:53):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Thank you. I promise. I had that tickle in my throat. I was like, "Ah, no, I can't." [inaudible 00:22:11].
Speaker 12 (22:11):
Everybody [inaudible 00:22:28].
Speaker 2 (22:11):
You-
